hellgate 40k
by Dontai
Summary: hellgate 40k takes place during the start of a war. Earth has been forcefully occupied, the Burn, a decades-long process of "hellforming" or turning our world into theirs has begun. However all is not lost, strange unknown forces have chosen human champions to stop the burn


The smoke drifts from his lips as he took another long drag from the military issued cigarette, the calming effect fighting off the boredom of guard duty. Even with this being one the most important cities on earth, surrounding the Imperial-Palace no less, nothing ever happened here. Thousands of the city's lively citizens were milling about choking the city streets. He heard the sound of thunder off in the distance. It was odd because far as he was aware, rain wasn't schedule by the weather control center. He looks up bewilder at the sky as if it was playing a trick on him, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky. He suddenly notices that the sky was turning an orangish-red and becoming hazy. He gazes down at his dog-tags; Pvt. Percy Frost, thinking the name that his parents chose was an odd combination. He suddenly sees something that causes his hand to go slack and the cigarette to fall to the ground; the sky was burning. He readies himself, raising his lasgun and prepares to run. He could hear footsteps that were probably from other guardsmen. From Percy's position, he could see that bodies were falling from the sky. They looked old, centuries at least; decaying, rotting husks. The bodies rolled off the top of building and crushed cars. Under the onslaught of bodies there was no fighting; only finding cover …

The commissioner's greatcoat and red-lined collar is drab and dingy, his epaulets are torn. The officer's peak cap is crooked and hanging half off of his head. "Forward, there is no greater reward than serving the Imperium." The Imperial trainees charged forward bayonets pointing toward the enemy, in this case a test dummies.

"Commissioner Khurt, how did I do," one of the trainees asked after impaling one of test dummies?

Khurt was showing his old age because it took him a while to respond, the world seemed far off and distant. He finally looks at the recruit and then lets out a barely noticeable sigh. "It won't matter private Johansson. If your rifle won't stop an Ork or corrupted space marine, than what is the point of this exercise? It's to teach you discipline; only as a unified force can you hope to break their armor."

Johansson nodded, "I understand."

There was a loud crack like thunder. "It's not supposed to rain today."

"No sir, the weather control didn't schedule rain."

"Then what the hell was that?"

"The world trembled as the sky split apart. The rift became a mighty vortex pulling men into opening as a gardener plucks weeds.

Most of the trainees with good fortune of come sense had already started running. The rest of them were paralyzed with fear. "Run you fools," Khurt commanding voice snaps them out of it and they fled the field. Once he was sure his recruits were safe, he takes off running behind them. "Don't stop," he screams. It was too late; the entire training ground was being ripped apart and being sucked into the vortex. It started at the far end taking in the test dummies and a tractor; then the shooting range. Finally the barrack, Headquarter, and medical tent were sucked into the vortex. Pretty soon there was nowhere to run. His students were being dragged in along with dirt, rocks, and trees.

Suddenly, it had stopped and the men came crashing back to earth. He had to roll out of the way to prevent being crushed by a falling trainee. Something caused him to focus on him. The fall had killed him, but he was getting back up despite this being impossible. The broken trainee reminded him of a marionette puppet trying to move: jittery and broken. The final detail just unnerved him; their eyes glowed bright iridescent blue. This was wrong, very, very wrong.

_They're many tales of what happens when the veil between life and death blurs: specters, ghost, poltergeist, banshees, wraith ... the idea of something crossing over. The life and death struggle means nothing in the void, human body becoming nothing more than a refuge for lost souls clinging on to hope ..._

He reaches for his belt and was surprised to find his sidearm still attached. He raises it and fires barely consciously aware of his action. He wasn't sure if the soldier was unaffected or just not interested in the wound, because he crawls forward unhindered by the injuries. There was a bright flash ...

Even through the smoke that was clouding the Ultra marines vision, he could see the tortured remains of the city. He climbs up the immense pile of rubble to view the desolation. This spot had once been a mighty spire, an imperial hub. Now it was just scattered ruins around the Imperial palace. With each step, he could hear the sound of the charred skeletons of the city many citizens crunch underfoot. His blue armor that had once been shiny, now had been stained black from the smoke becoming tarnished and dimmed significantly. Cracks had formed in the visor and the gloves had chunks missing from them. His eyes drifted toward the sky, the stars had disappeared. Now, far above him the sky had become a sea of flames. He was alone, the only soul gazing up at it. Most of the space marines were stationed off world. The few stationed here on earth were the last and only line of defense. He had seen the impossible and it had torn apart the Imperial-Guard, but the memory was both metaphorically and physically burned from his memory by nuclear hell fire that had consumed the city.

He switches on his radio, "This is Lieutenant Nathan Hanson of the ultra-marines to anyone still alive. Is anyone reading this broadcast?" It was possible everyone was already dead or … he shuddered at the thought. A localized scan reveals that radiation was interfering with communication. He takes a brief moment to remember earth before the event, far from beautiful but so full of vibrant life. His reason for visiting earth was to speak to the high lords of Terra on behalf of his chapter.

A red light on his computer made matters worse. The satellites in orbit were destroyed, planet wide communication and orbital scans were impossible. There was a voice coming over his vox, "This Ethan Hawkes, I'm reading you. Do exactly as I tell you if you want to live."

"Who is this? You part of the Imperial Guard or government?"

The voice paused before replying back, "I'm neither. I'm a scientist, my name is Ethan Hawkes."

"I'm not going to take order from some imperial scientist."

"Listen, we don't have time to argue."

Nathan let out a barely audible grumble before asking, "You know what happened to the city? They would only use a thermal nuclear devise as a last resort."

"There was no warning, no time to prepare, most of the Imperial-Guard died at their post without firing a shot. Everyone caught in the rift's wake was consumed instantly, their soul have been displaced and trapped within it. The denizens of hell have taken possession of their bodies creating a very effective army of meat puppets. Akin to what you would call zombies. The undead had flooded the city, easily overrunning remaining pockets of resistance. The Imperial commander saw fit to prevent the city from falling into enemy hands. It was a costly and ultimately pointless gesture."

"How could you possible know any of this?"

"The same way I knew about you, I hacked localized communication. Once I had hacked into to the feed, I hacked directly into your vox. The rest is a long story for another time. I'm uploading a map to your HUD, it was also be available on your on-board wrist computer. Follow I-95 west, than take Compton road until you reach the sea of lakes. It's located at the city line 5, where the City of Holy Shores meet the border of Pelagic." Nathan HUD pops up showing a bright blue transparent holographic map and a useful arrow pointing in the direction of the target.

Nathan flick open his wrist computer and within a few clicks, retraces the arrow to a place on that map. The holographic map suddenly shut off displaying a warning sign: off limits except for the highest of authority. "So, not only are you a world class hacker who is an expert in Imperial technology, but your also expert on space marine technology, which is classified. Isn't that the location of the Grey-knights' chapter house? Isn't that a no-trespassing zone? "

"Last of the chatter places the Gray-knights off world. The entrance into sewer is underneath their chapter house and for good reason." Nathan was sure that this was a trap, but the Gray-knights were the best hope for restoring the situation.

"I'll go," he declares at last. "I'll pray you're correct."

The Ethan says ominously, "No, pray that you're correct." The communication ends.

The chapter house was more of a mini city surrounding a massive Gothic building that looked like an old medieval church. The buildings were adorned with ornamental stone tablets painted yellow to look like sheets of paper; each one had a commandment or a vow. Perched high above were stone gargoyles staring down menacingly. The outside of the city was surrounded by massive courtyard, ocean of violets and blues formed from massive floral decoration amongst the largest of grass fields. The beautiful vista was ruined by the bodies of Imperial guardsmen that laden the area. He stops to examine the bodies; most had died from imperial weapon. No sign of the enemy, just these weird crumbling statues amongst the battlefield. He rubs dust left over from the crumbling statues between his fingers. It smelled of rotten eggs which meant it contained sulfur and was still warm. He saw something that struck him as odd; a lasgun was clutch in the statue's hands. These things weren't statues, they must have been alive.

There was the slightest shaking to the ground that instantly set off his reflex off and sent adrenaline pumping though his vein. It reminds him of the sound of a tank's approaching, the shaking caused the rock and stone decorations to tremble. Yet the rest of the area remained still. He stops shifting his weight forward preparing to see the source of the sound. Whatever it was, it was right on top of him. His ears peak up as he scans the field; nothing. Besides the rustling of the grass, there were no signs of moment. Then the shaking came around again and the rocks around him began to levitate of their own accord. Burning Runes had appeared in the ground, ancient symbols he couldn't recognize. He watches them for a second curious; for the moment they were harmless. Then the runes explode ... the smoke parted around the tearing visage of two swooping horns connect seamlessly to slender bestial head that ended in a pointy chin. Surrounding their heads was a fiery manes that crackled and roars louder than their silent cries, which causes so much intense heat that the air began to shimmer; their skin like cracked burning stone. The creatures advanced from within parting smoke causing, for Nathan, for the first time to feel something creeping up his spine ... fear. Most had no weapon, but some had fiery insubstantial swords.

_These creatures are the unscrupulous front line soldier of hell. More incarnation than flesh; they're the literal representation of the war in heaven created from the very fires left over from it …_

He watches these impossible horrors, studying their tactics. The few that had swords were forming a line to protect the unarmed ones. When the line had advanced, he caught sight of the unarmed ones scavenging weapon from the battlefield. He was going to give them a chance, making sure his moments were quick and calculated, graceful. He caught two them off guard, moving between the line and catching them with a single sword stroke. Then moving towards the unarmed group, his sword met the enemy thick stone skin. The sword wasn't up to the task and he lost three of his swords teeth chipping off from a single blow. He didn't have time to think, he ran past them and switch to his bolter. Good old fashioned bolter, he thought, rarely jams and has amazing stopping power, even against thing that defied explanation. He back up a pace, and in silly reuse of the word, pace his fire. He guns down as many as he could before, in that short amount of time, a few of them got their hands on some lasguns. His armor was damaged increasing the lasgun effectiveness; few close calls but nothing serious. It was hard to ignore the lasgun damage when the built-in warning system kept yelling at him in a female voice. He pushes on past them into the city street and taking a few more shots in the process.

The inner city street was just another grisly sights, like the bodies that he could see up and down the block. Between the bodies of the chapter recruits and the civilians whose faces had been permanently etched with a terrified expression, this place had become a port in the storm. They fled here praying for sanctuary but found none. These concrete walls had become their tomb and their bodies becoming a permanent reminder of what had happened here. There were no survivors and the reason for it was all to obvious. This was an ambush from all sides. Buildings were chipped and marked from lasgun fire from the civilian's escorts; clearly failed in their mission. The direction and the pattern showed fire in all direction. It wasn't at head level or in the street. You could see the marks on the building across the street, off to his left. The Imperial Guardsmen called the standard battle stance: the stand and deliver. They stood their ground and delivered the rounds. The blast marks showed this just didn't happen; this was chaos not controlled military fire. He had to shake the morbid feeling and focus on ahead. For a second he wonders what his father would say about this. He had been in more wars than him, experiencing against the likes of chaos. Nathan knew one thing, his father was caring man. He would be sadden knowing that these poor souls would never get a proper burial. Nathan knew his fate, like theirs, was sealed. He wasn't going to be getting a funeral either.

There was low hissing sound coming from up ahead forcing him to the ground. He didn't move forward to get closer look, he staid motionless. It was a stupid maneuver because a marine stood out like a sore thumb, unable to use stealth. It was stupid to head towards a sound unaware of what you were walking into. He manually zoomed in the suit's built in camera. It was like a hunched over large cat that stood up right. It had large ears that ended in points, orange matted fur that tufted up near its neck. It face was deep inside the cavity of a guardsmen. He wasn't sure how, but it heard his camera clicking causing it to withdraw from its meal; you could see its blood splatter face. It caused a shiver to go down his spine. "Damn," he mutters. It leaped on to all fours and ushers a howl. It was answered by calls from all around him and accompanied by movement from all sides.

_Fell Bores are twisted acts of creation that are naturally occurring predators and scavengers. They barely have a higher intelligence besides the basic ability to hunt as a pack, but are highly emotional creatures. Each member forms a lifelong emotional bond with the pack becoming deeply connected. They have natural infinity for digging and thus prefer the dark retches of the world. _

The first thing he noticed is that they hunted in packs. Second was that they weren't entirely stupid. They had him surrounded and waiting motionless for the right moment to attack. The ones off to his right and left remained hidden until the two attacked from behind; soon after four more attacked from the front. He caught the two from behind with one well timed blow and turning to face his attackers from the front. Their first attacks were testing him for weakness, not expecting grace equal to their own. Instead they found themselves facing an enemy just as quick and nimble. The battle had ended abruptly and the survivors released a clearly mournful howl. It was a critical moment with their behavior becoming bizarre, becoming timid. The remaining members realizing just how bad their losses were. He was no long convinced they would continue their attack. Not letting an opportunity pass him by, he continues onward.

He was standing in a grey stone courtyard, once beautiful; it took one battle to obscure that beauty. The bodies had drawn his attention. Unlike the other bodies he had seen previously, their skin was pale almost grey and there was no sign of scavengers. The wounds observed, which were deep gashes and disembowelment, had a bizarre lack of blood. Upon further investigation, he found strange marks on all of the bodies. It looked like it was torn into them by dozen of tiny teeth. He heard a squeak from a overhead sign, he wasn't sure what he was firing at, but he turned and fired. It tore the sign down sending it crashing to the ground. He hurried on unsure how long before something tore into him. Something up ahead was moving, a wooden shutter burst open. He was instantly focused on the area; nothing. He took cover behind a down wall and waited. Eventually, he stood up confused. There was a gap between the collapsed aging grey wall and the building a few feet away with no way to avoid being caught out in the open. There was a sound from above; he drew his bolter and looks up …

_It's said that people's souls are displaced when caught in hell's wake. Unable to pass on, these soul become corrupt and overtime descend into madness; like poltergeist. These souls eventually take refuge in the dead or the dying giving life to dead flesh. Humans throughout the ages attributed these being to vampires. Yet I witness account of these vampires are strangely absent as there are no survivors …_

This was worse, something new. A creature with rotting putrid slimy charcoal-grey leather skin smelling of brimstone with tattered pieces hanging off. Its' head was shape like a primate and that's where the similarities ended, with multiple eyes like a spider and tendril that hanged down like dread locks. Two sacks filled with fluid protruding from its back and there was a hallowed out sections of its chest cavity where its lungs were exposed. The horrid creature crawled on four long lanky limbs, making a rustling sound as it moved. He was paralyzed; when you were staring at the creature, it was like staring into the abyss. They stared at each other for a long, long, moment. He eventually snapped out of it and lowers his weapon. It was a costly mistake. Because when he turned his back, the creature leaps forward landing on his back. He charged forward, the sudden momentum shifts the creature's weight and knocking it off balance; before ramming it into a building that was few feet away. The entire right wall had collapses into rubble, crushing the creature beneath it.

The fight was over quickly and He was little worse for wear. The main chapter house was dead ahead. A stone decorative sign stated boldly:_ _Never forget those _to whom this memorial was built for. _Only the faithful will have the will and the strength to prosper in times of despair, __only the faithful shall____ enter. He tripped over the body of a fall Astartes, the body wasn't alone. There were dozens of them surrounding the door, most of them were recruits. Only the infirm or retired would have remained behind. The ladder would remain to train the new recruits in the way of the chapter doctrine. The bulk of their forces were either located on their Fortress-Monastery on Titan or away on assignment. Most of the Grey-Knight's armor had been torn open as if by a giant can opener or more easily described, a force sword. The others had been fallen by weapons of man. The enemies that surrounded them were numerous. There were several he didn't witness beforehand and many more he had, stone creatures and rotting leather skins. All of them together lay in mass graves. As he stood up, he surveyed the endless sea of carnage well aware of the massing hoard of rotting skins crawling towards him. The Grey Knight had fought valiantly to the last man. Amongst these fallen heroes were a few marines of other chapters and countless imperial guardsmen, many had been nothing more than conscripts. He spotted an ancient sword clutched in the hands of the highest ranking Grey-Knight. He freed the sword from the previous owner, finding it engraved with strange runes and a simple quote, _'I'm the leading edge of the Emperor's sword, the instrument of His will, the gauntlet about His fist, the tip of his spear. By this mark they shale bear witness to his litany of fury.'_

Behind him, he heard haunting voice that made his blood run cold from. "So, you have found my sword?" He spun around and froze, the insubstantial form of the Grey-Knight captain was staring into his eyes. "What is this," Nathan less ask and stammered at him?

"I am the soul of the Grey-Knight who wielded the sword; my name is John." He paused for a brief moment realizing that his time was at a end causing him to choke up, "My name was John. I bare the Emperor's mark. Only those who bare the mark may wield his blade. My soul, my very essence, I poured into the blade, so that even if I'm wounded in battle, my body would live on. Too bad it proved not enough and I have fallen. My soul is now bound to you, as well as everyone else who wielded the blade. We're now part of you; use us to bring ruination and damnation to the enemies of man." His image vanished, his presence was still felt. It was like chilling breeze surrounded the air sending shivers down your spine. He stared at the sword thinking, Huh, a physically bound haunted sword. If only his chapter master could see him now. Hell even his father. Nathan didn't have time to ponder what new ruinous fortune favored him, he through the doors to the chapter house open …

_Use us to bring ruination and damnation to the enemies of man …_

In the darkness, he couldn't make out much, except that the main room was a cathedral and the closest room was further down. He had to be careful not to trip over the pew on his way towards the back. He heard one of the above window shattering and something scurrying up ahead. His vox kicked in, "They're in the building. You need to hurry, head towards the end of the hall on the right. It's the last door."

The last door revealed a long staircase that was descending into the darkness. At the bottom he was greet by dozen of lasguns, all them dead aimed on him.

Most of the men were silent except for a young man with long slick back hair a few shades off of brown, shallow cheek bones that curved up to his wide eyes that made up the prominent features of his face. He showed no signs of being tired or worn out despite the obvious chaos up stairs. The soldier was also lower rank then the rest of the men around him, yet he was clearly the one calling the shots. "Where did you come from?"

He looks dead at the guardsmen before his eyes drift back up the stairs. "Surface," he says briefly.

"You're looking at the last of the 401'st rescue squad assigned to protect this shelter." The guardsman said stepping forward, in the low light it reveals his green flack jacket was torn in the middle, tattered, and blood splattered.

"do i want to ask, he says pointing at the flack jacket.

seems pretty obvious, been rough day

"Agree," he said stroking his chin. "So 401'st rescue squad? You don't seem to be rescuing anyone." He was honestly trying not to come off sarcastic just funny. Humor might help the situation.

"Sadly, this has been the low point of our career. We didn't have a chance, there was too many of them. I was part of the police force before this. I was task with the most mundane, food riots, domestic calls, crime etc. When I saw the sky go dark, I didn't know what to do. It got bad very fast. People turned on each other."

"Where is the rest of the Grey-Knights they should be here defending?"

The look of sadness said it all. Still this man felt compelled to speak, "The Grey-Knights sent out a message promising protection, shelter and medical supplies; safety to anyone who can reach them. The imperial guard that survived the city's destruction sought refuge here. By the time I made it, the entire city was being overrun. The Grey-Knights chose to stay behind and fight to the last. I should know because I was there. I joined the last of Imperial Guard holding the church until civilian could arrive. We didn't find out until the last minute that civilians and their escorts were ambushed. When the enemy pushed on us, I pleaded with Grey-Knights to take their recruit and retreat inside. The Grey-Knights chose to stay outside and fight to the last saying that they stand where they fall. Stupid, arrogant, self-righteous pricks, some of the finest souls I ever met. Throwing away their lives in a vein effort to redeem themselves. They should have waited for reinforcement. Enough people have died already ..."

"So we're alone," his voice was filled with grief forcing him to take deep breaths; he could smell the stale air that reeked of death.

The soldier nodded, "We're all that is left, come on."

Several hours later in relative safety, Nathan was pacing back and forth. "Just what the hell is going on," he couldn't tell if he was angry or frustrated. "This is the heart of the imperium, how could a warp storm hit the earth? It's protected by the god of mankind, the Emperor."

"Like that fact matters," one of the Imperial Guardsmen says. It was one of the men that had been following the private. Nathan never once struck a man for speaking out, especially not an Imperial Guardsmen. But too much was happening now, too fast, it was all a blur. He came to his senses with his plasma pistol drawn in a threatening posture, finger tense on the trigger but his hands were shaking. Their leader was on the far side of the room, either unaware of the situation or not caring about it. He had been staring off into space. Suddenly he had cross the room and was addressing the situation. "I can see your hand shaking. You don't want to do this. Listen, my name is Pvt. Percy Frost of the city militia, Earth First Regiment. What is yours?"

Nathan eased up on the gun, "Nathan ... my name is Nathan."

"Listen Nathan, just holster your pistol, enough people have died for one lifetime." Nathan listens and lowers his weapon. Percy continues to speak, "It's OK, we have all been through a lot. But you got to see it through private Rickie's point of view. The people changed becoming like wild animals. I personally watched my brothers being torn apart; the screaming and carnage, it stays with you. You have no right to judge him. It was a blood bath and the Emperor didn't do squat to prevent it. Then we seek shelter here and it's just more of the same, all over again … except we watch the most legendary of all the Emperor's angels of death being slaughter to the last man. It's enough to shake any man's faith"

Nathan recites an old hymn, "fear denies faith."

"Fear gives rise to the truth. Faith simply blinds you to it, so that you're more ready to except your death. We were certain of our survival, that our fortress world's defense couldn't be penetrated, that no one would ever set foot on the gem of the Imperium. Now we have paid the ultimate untimely price for that certainty; our lives." Nathan knew Percy was right.

He was starting to feel vicarious toward him and speaks up making sure his words were heard, "I could scarcely believe it myself. This world was proof that the Imperium would prevail, the one last hope. As long as Terra exists so will the Imperium; at least my father use to say that to me. I'm sorry about your men, but I'm barely holding on here. I need something to hold on to. Terra is a conquered world, it's unthinkable that she fell without warning or a chance to defend her. Now horrors and abominations taint her purity. The symbol of the Imperium and the birth place of man is forever tarnished."

His vox beeps and a red light comes on showing an incoming transmission, "If you guys are finished, maybe you could get on with it?!"

"You were listening in? How could you possibly do that without hacking into our vox?"

"I got several unorthodox skills and I can do more than just that. Further into the sewer, left until you reach the ancient hatchway, inside you will find the ruins."

The small band of survivors looked on with awe and wonder at the new world they found themselves in. Nathan states out loud as a rhetorical question,"This massive cavern stretches on for miles! We must be underneath the palace city district, but how did this entire city get buried?" The images of this fantastical buried city briefly bring up the warmer more cheerful memories of his childhood, he continues saying, "It reminds me of a city I grew up in, the width of space and the gap between the stars, far away from earth. It makes me miss my home city!" He takes off his helmet, exposing his emotions that were all to clear, if anyone had been paying attention. His once chiseled face was now slack from exhaustion making him appear to be a withered old man.

"The sound of its people going about their business, so innocently and unaware of the dangers lurking out in the vastness of space. This old crumbling city was a warning, there are many secrets out there and most them could kill you. I remember seeing picture of something similar to this city in school. It was definitely earth culture, early men of iron. It amazing that most of the city is intact." A few sections had been crushed when the roof caved in, otherwise mostly intact. They could see the architect was beautifully crafted from brick and mortar, but the structures themselves had no real significant except being engraved with strange runes. They were of your typical variety of city structures, houses forming a Cul-de-sac, shops lining the streets, banks, even a barbershop. There was nothing out of the ordinary about this except for it location ... "Why on earth were the Grey-Knight guarding this places?"

"The real question marine, is why preserve it? This cavern should have collapsed in on itself hundreds of years ago."

Nathan stops mid-stride, "These structures are from before the age of iron men. Suspicious if you ask me."

"Agreed," Nathan replies.

He scanned the city streets, "where is the opening to the portal?" They were heading towards a intersection between the streets where the buildings became larger. "This must have been down town." Nathan looks around seeing rubbish in the street, long since dead shrubbery (which brought up the question of how they got the plants to grow inside the cave) and old rusted signs. He still couldn't find it the entrance. "Damn, where is that guy when you need him?"

"The entrance was kept a secret and for a damn good reason," Hawkes chimed in, still clearly listening in. "Turn down Shurberg Street, it's the third house on the right."

"It's what," Nathan asks? He never got his answer. He shrugs and waves in that direction.

"Well boys and girls, this makes no sense. Who hides a military installation inside a regular civilian house, nothing out of ordinary?"

"A really clever man," Frost snorts. One of the imperial guards opens the white wooden panel front door, its rusty hinges causing it to squeak. The first door to be spotted inside the dusty old home, went to the basement. He readies his bolter just in case, hearing the guardsmen check their weapons brought him some comfort as well, when he is ready he throws open the door. "What the hell," Nathan asks letting the bolter fall to his side? Behind the door was a massive metal round portal, like those found aboard ships, except it was protect by physic barrier and engraved with the same types of ruins found earlier. The middle slides out in a spiral pattern, revealing a scrawny young man with long dirty blond hair and sloppy demeanor but was sharply dressed in an inquisitor outfit. His attached cybernetic eye piece seems to have a mind of its own. "Ok, first thing first, How the hell ..." Nathan begins to say but is cut off mid-sentence when Hawkes walks away. He motions for them to follow him …

Nathan stops, the sight was breath taking. It wasn't as big or as beautiful as the city, but amazing none the less. Massive computer banks filled the room along with large pumps and other large machinery making the room noisy as hell. His interest was peaked, question swarmed his mind, each begging for attention. The most glaring was how he mange to hear him with all of this noise. The marine Percy had already left with the rest of his men leaving him behind. He sahkes off the question and race off to catch up to the group.

They stopped in what was clearly was a laboratory from the set of table laden with beakers and test tubes. It also had more computers both big and small, lining the far right wall.


End file.
